Harsh winter causes overages in Kittery's DPW budget

KITTERY, Maine — The winter has taken its toll on the Kittery Public Works Department budget, with the overtime paid to the crew nearly double what was budgeted last July.

Deborah McDermott

KITTERY, Maine — The winter has taken its toll on the Kittery Public Works Department budget, with the overtime paid to the crew nearly double what was budgeted last July.

Town Manager Nancy Colbert Puff will talk to the Town Council about the overages at the council's meeting tonight.

According to her calculations, $27,985 was budgeted for this current fiscal year for snow and storm overtime costs, and to date, $53,850 has been spent — a substantial 92 percent over budget.

At the same time, only $28.52 remains in the salt budget, with the DPW having already expended about $94,971 of the $95,000 budget. The salt shed is only one-quarter full at this time.

The DPW's general overtime account is in good shape, according to Colbert Puff's figures. Only $3,500 of $23,879 has been spent to date. However, the fiscal year does not end until the end of June.

In other business

The council is set to discuss a proposal by councilors Judy Spiller and Chuck Denault to reinvigorate the town's Shared Services Committee. The committee was formed seven years ago, to explore sharing services with the Kittery School Department.

According to a report to the council, the committee played a role in the expansion of Mitchell Primary and Shapleigh Middle schools, and reorganizing the municipal and school financial services into essentially a town financial center.

However, in recent years the councilors said the committee has been dormant. They suggest the committee be reformed and its charge updated to include not only sharing opportunities with the schools but with area towns, as well. They point to the fact that the police chief is shared by Kittery and Eliot, and they said they believe other opportunities are possible.

"As Kittery and other surrounding communities see the value of sharing resources, we believe that there will be a greater need for a committee like Share Services to identify and vet potential agreements," they said.

Advertise

Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted.
seacoastonline.com ~ 111 New Hampshire Ave., Portsmouth, NH 03801 ~ Privacy Policy ~ Terms Of Service